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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Digital Wayfinding: A User Study, M Ryan Hess Oct 2015

Digital Wayfinding: A User Study, M Ryan Hess

M Ryan Hess

The DePaul University Richardson Library conducted a study of an interactive, touch-based wayfinding screen in order to determine 1) what specific content needs users desire in digital wayfinding services and 2) are user content needs so broad, a more full-feature experience with access to all library web content would be preferred. The three-phase study included analysis of click analytics data, observations of user interactions and questionnaires targeting user experiences and expectations. The study builds on research at other libraries around point-of-need wayfinding signage and usability of digital information. Phase 1 involved capturing anonymous click analytics of user interactions, over a …


Assessing Perceived Usability Of The Data Curation Profiles Toolkit Using The Technology Acceptance Model, Tao Zhang, Lisa Zilinski, D Scott Brandt, Jake Carlson Feb 2015

Assessing Perceived Usability Of The Data Curation Profiles Toolkit Using The Technology Acceptance Model, Tao Zhang, Lisa Zilinski, D Scott Brandt, Jake Carlson

Lisa Zilinski

Presentation slides; The DCPT has been widely adopted and applied in various contexts but its usability as a tool has not been formally assessed. To address this need, we have conducted a survey of users of the DCPT. The survey included quantitative measures of potential influencing factors of using the DCPT and its perceived usability (its usefulness as a tool and its ease of use). Open-ended questions about users’ experiences with the DCPT were also included to better understand the strengths and weaknesses of the tool, as well as areas that could be improved. Factor analysis of the quantitative results …


Theory Development And Pilot Testing Of A New Survey Instrument On Usability By Older Adults, Meriam Caboral-Stevens Feb 2015

Theory Development And Pilot Testing Of A New Survey Instrument On Usability By Older Adults, Meriam Caboral-Stevens

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

An aging population and the use of technology are two pervasive phenomena that are burgeoning simultaneously. The confluence of these phenomena may present challenges for the older adults that could prevent a successful interface. Barriers and challenges can be addressed by examining the interface between older adults and technology. Usability is described as how well and how easily a user without formal training can interact effectively with the system. A review of the literature shows paucity in nursing theories on usability and the use of technology among older adults. This paper describes the development of a conceptual model - Use …


Applying Hierarchical Task Analysis Method To Discovery Layer Evaluation, Marlen Promann, Tao Zhang Jan 2015

Applying Hierarchical Task Analysis Method To Discovery Layer Evaluation, Marlen Promann, Tao Zhang

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

While usability tests have been helpful in evaluating the success or failure of implementing discovery layers in the library context, the focus of usability tests has remained on the search interface rather than the discovery process for users. The informal site-­‐ and context specific usability tests have offered little to test the rigor of the discovery layers against the user goals, motivations and workflow they have been designed to support. This study proposes hierarchical task analysis (HTA) as an important complementary evaluation method to usability testing of discovery layers. Relevant literature is reviewed for the discovery layers and the HTA …


Testing The Waters: Local Users, Sea Level Rise, And The Productive Usability Of Interactive Geovisualizations, Daniel Richards Jan 2015

Testing The Waters: Local Users, Sea Level Rise, And The Productive Usability Of Interactive Geovisualizations, Daniel Richards

English Faculty Publications

This paper explores the potential for technical communicators to employ usability research with risk-based interactive geovisualization technologies as a method of cultivating "critical rhetorics of risk communication" for local communities. Through integrating theories from usability studies and risk communication, I offer some new directions for thinking about the productive usability of online, participatory technologies that promote citizen engagement in science. I argue that the key tenets of productive usability afford technical communicators the opportunity to build localized knowledge of risk in real, local users, which in turn improves the capacity for a community and its stakeholders to more effectively communicate …